Red Spartan
by Firestarter09
Summary: Ruby B-312 had been called a lone wolf. A SPARTAN surrounded by black ink. They should've died during Operation: TORPEDO. They should've died on Reach. And yet they didn't. It was as if fate had other plans for the SPARTAN.
1. Chapter 1

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Ruby Rose sat with her face between her knees, petrified, with little tears trailing down her face. Ruby wasn't exactly sure why she was huddled up and crying, but she knew that when she tried to think about it, it only made her cry leaving her only more paralyzed. She looked around only seeing black, black walls, a black table even the floor and ceiling were black; the only piece of illumination left was a single light above the obsidian colored table.

The man was gone now, though, and all she really could do was sit there, huddled up, scared, and confused. It fit her like a glove. Eventually, she raised her face from her knees and allow her legs to sprawl out. "H-hello? I-is anyone there?" she spoke with a small stutter.

No answer.

She let out a worried whimper before speaking up once more. "P-please, anyone..." At that moment, a door opened, and light leaked into the room, but it was a brief moment that didn't last long as a tall figure came through the door, which closed a moment later. Now returned to a twilight, Ruby listened to the loud clacking of shoes against the metal floor.

Her gaze went to the table and waited for the figure to appear there, and when the person did, she could barely make out their features. The lighting obscured their faces, leaving her even more terrified.

She repeated her words from earlier, "H-hel—" but stopped mid-way as the figure's head moved in her general direction, even if she couldn't see their eyes or even general facial features, she still felt that it was cold. It scared her, made her want to shrivel up into a small ball and die.

 **"Come here now,"** the figure finally said several words that were just as cold as their gaze, and instead of shrinking into a ball and dying, Ruby herself compelled to do what they said. Her body went against what she wanted herself, and she didn't want to be anywhere near this person.

She stood, she walked, she shivered.

With each step, her heart pounded, with each breath, sweat ran down the side of her head, with each shiver, she drew closer and closer and closer until she bumped against the chair.

"Ow." She let out a small groan as she took a step back, how did she miss that? God, it was like she was on autopilot!

Her shaking hands reached out and pulled the surprisingly light black chair back before sitting in it. It was frigid like the floor and it was very smooth, to the point that Ruby feared she might slip off it entirely. Something at the back of her mind told her that she was going to be just fine, and that same something then forced her to look directly at the figure who had become more defined.

The figure was a man with either brown or blonde hair, though the lighting of the room made it hard to tell. Said lighting also obscured his eyes, preventing any sign of what he was looking at. His face was strong, built, chin straight and clean, no blemish or stubble of hair. He wore a black suit for all that Ruby could tell, and his elbows rested on the edge of the black table, hands clasped together.

"Ruby Rose, are you okay?" Her eyes went wide as he spoke in a calm, warmer tone that sounded almost caring. "I know my sudden appearance may be unnerving to you, but I can assure you that I'm not like the others who have talked to you. If I need to give you time to adjust, I can leave if that makes you feel better." Ruby was taken aback by this, and she had nothing to say in response to those words, though that tingling feeling she felt in the back of her mind did help.

She crossed her arms and shivered slightly, "I-I, it-it-its fine, please, just go on." Ruby didn't look him in the eye, focusing only on the center of the table. For one reason or another, she felt compelled to do so.

He unclasped his hands, "All right, I guess I'll get to the point then." As his fingers touched the reflective surface of the table, it lit up blue as many icons and words popped up across it. With a single motion of his finger, he sent a blue blurb across the table, which stopped once it reached the end, opening up into several images of rubble.

In the rubble were identifiable features such as blonde hair, a white cloak, and a small girl. Ruby felt a twinge in her head and a sudden drop in her stomach. It didn't seem to end just kept going on further and further. The images grew more disturbing, to say the least, there was nothing but destruction, rubble, corpses strewn about. There were around twenty or so bodies, discounting the ones missing limbs or straight up cut in half.

From what she had seen of this utter carnage, were three bodies that drew her attention. The first one being the blond-haired male, caused her to twitch in her seat. His face was unrecognizable as it was melted beyond recognition, bubbled, his clothing was torn to crimson-stained shreds, an arm and a leg were missing, and several bites lined his torso and neck.

Her eyes drifted slightly.

The twinge did not cease, and her eyes twitched before she moved her gaze to the next image: a little blonde girl... or what remained of her. Her head was caved in on one side, and the other was just a tangled mess of bloody hair, one lifeless eye blankly looking on. Her yellow shirt was torn and bloodied, and just below that was absolutely nothing.

Once again, her eyes drifted.

The feeling grew and grew and grew, and the next image set something off in Ruby. The white cloak contrasted with blotches of crimson, blood, and dirt. A steel beam punctured through the middle of the wrap and the body beneath it—Ruby's gaze moved slightly before she suddenly jerked away from the image and proceeded to empty her stomach on the floor.

It took a minute or two for her to stop. When that passed, she was still heaving and panting. Again and again and again till her already pale face was dripping with sweat. She rested her head against the metal chair, and her body shook slightly as her eyes fixated on the man across from her. He silently waited for a word, a peep.

She eventually croaked "Why?" He raised a brow as Ruby spoke, probably having expected a different reaction. "Why are there so many people like that?" The look on her face was of worry and curiosity. "Who did this to them?"

"What was the first thing that drew you in?" the man finally spoke calmly, ignoring the questions and just watching as she went silent. "What made you vomit?" He tilted his head slightly to the right as his hands remained clasped together. "Go on, explain." He gestured to the images.

Ruby froze on her seat, heart beating rapidly. Her hand rose up slowly, and she pointed at the images which had set her off. The blonde, the girl, and the cape. She lowered her finger, and her gaze snapped to the ground to the pool of vomit. Ruby whispered a word or two before falling silent.

"What was that? I didn't quite hear you?" the man softly asked. Ruby's lips moved once more, and she spoke just a bit louder, just loud enough for the man to hear. "A baby," the man repeated in curiosity, and his shadowed body shifted a bit forward, allowing the green of his eyes to be seen. "Is that really what made you vomit, or are you afraid to admit the truth?" His voice carried a light chuckle. "Trust me, it is better to answer truthfully."

"Y-yes, the baby... I saw it, and..." She paused for a moment glancing into her lap. Her expression went neutral while her brain thought of what to say. "I..." Ruby's head rose slowly. "I saw all those other people! And I couldn't take it! WHO WOULD DO SUCH A THING TO THEM!" her expression was one of confusion, fear, worry, and anger, and then her eyes widened as she realized she had raised her voice, and her face went red with embarrassment. "I didn't mean to yell, s-s-sorry," Ruby stuttered at the end as she looked away from the man's general direction.

The man chuckled again. "That is perfectly fine. You're angry and confused, and I have done nothing to help with that." He paused for a moment as a small red dot formed on his side of the table, flashing red, and he let out a sigh before he continued. "Sadly, I need to cut this short. But before I go..." He moved from his seat and stood up, looking down at Ruby as he tapped something on the table, making the red dot disappear. "I have an offer for you, Ruby. A simple one that also answers some questions that must be on your mind.

"It's a program for children without families, specifically the ones that want to get back at what caused all that gore." He tapped the table once more, lighting it up and causing a small white box with text to appear on Ruby's side, and the man turned around to walk away. "Note that the choice is yours on this matter, but do not choose lightly. There is no going back if you join this program." He approached the door of the room and pressed something on the wall before it opened, revealing the lit halls. "Oh! I almost forgot."

The man turned halfway and looked back at Ruby, who focused on the table and that small text box. "Those three people you pointed out, those were your family members." Ruby looked away from the table and to the man with a thousand-yard stare. Her eyes moved around looking across the room, as her mind ran ablaze.

"Oh." Ruby's tone was cold, autonomous.

Her family, her family! was that why they felt so familiar? Her breathing did not change nor did any audible noises escaped from her.

No.

No…

No, no, no, why wasn't she feeling anything! She should be crying, why wasn't she crying!

Wait…

She knew why.

It didn't bother her… she didn't care that her family was gone… why should she, she didn't remember a single thing about them.

Her eyes were moving swiftly moving to look around as her heart started to beat faster.

But why did she cry, why was her reaction so loud and…

Her heart skipped a beat.

The baby.

The baby…

Those innocent people.

Stamped out forever.

She'd make them pay, whoever did this. They deserve to die…

Silence filled the air for a long moment before the man left her alone in that cold, dark room, save for the single light in the middle. And as she sat there thinking to herself, her eyes moved slowly back to the white box, titled SPARTAN-III.

/

 **Author's Note's:**

 **So to start off, I rewrote the story again. I... I have no excuse for keeping you all waiting, I was scared. I looked back at what I wrote and realized it wasn't the best it could be... It was, meh. There was too much going on at once and it, not enough focus, that, that is a problem I've realized with all my writing... save my grammar and punctuation skills... I do all these things at once and it just doesn't lead to something that feels right or satisfying. So I rewrote again and I honestly think this is probably the best version of what I wrote... I hope you can enjoy this and understand where I was coming from. I'm sorry, I really am and hopefully, this never happens again.**


	2. Chapter 2

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Winter Schnee was not in the best of situations. She had no idea where she was, wearing clothes she didn't recognize. She had a throbbing headache and soreness in her limbs.

At least she had a pillow beneath her head.

Her eyes focused on the flat ceiling above as she tried to move her head. Her neck stung as she turned slowly to the left, trying to get some idea of the space she was in at the moment. She saw nothing but a grey metal wall. She turned to the right, wincing at the pain, but again saw only another grey metal wall.

Winter paused and focused on the wall to her right.

Her vision was blurred.

She squinted and thought she could make out a faint outline. Was it a door? She stared for a few moments, willing her eyes to focus before she gave up and gazed at the ceiling again.

Everything was grey.

She closed her eyes again, enveloped in the stillness of the room. When she opened them back moments later, she let out a small, startled gasp.

Blinking her eyes, she realized the soreness was gone.

Winter groaned as she pulled herself upright on the bed. Her white bangs fell in front of her gaze, briefly obscuring the room before she brushed them away.

She turned in her spot, feet dangling off the side of the bed.

There was no clear indication of how much time had passed; it could've been a few minutes, an hour, or even a day at best.

She took a step forward.

Her balance was gone; that much was obvious. Like a piece of paper, she crumpled, falling face-first to the floor. "Ow," she muttered. The pain was brief, but it was like being pelted with thousands of tiny rocks. A few moments later, she tried to stand again.

"Oh, you seem to be in pain," a male voice suddenly spoke. "Then again, that isn't surprising... you're not very used to cryo, so you're experiencing a side effect."

What did the voice mean, cryo?

She tried again to push herself up from the floor. Her head craned up and scanned the room, trying to find the source of the voice. She leaned back against the bed and finally spoke, "Who are you? Where am I? What do you want with me?"

"How adorable," the voice responded snarkily. "You know I had this whole thing planned out. I would've got someone to come to get you, lead you through the hallway. But, I decided on something a bit more fun." Winter stood on wobbly legs and remained quiet as the voice spoke. "You're pretty smart for a seven-year-old. Your records show an above-average I.Q., as well as being in honor's classes."

Winter furrowed her brow and looked around the room, trying to spot a speaker of some kind.

The voice began to ramble slightly. "Don't know why they didn't choose you, but I can't argue... Orders are orders. Well, might as well get the door for you." The door began to hiss, then slid to the left, slowly opening up to a well-lit hallway. "Go on; follow the pretty lights."

Winter looked at the open door, and then around the room, before taking a step away from the bed. Gods, her legs felt so weak! She took another step and stumbled, arms stretching forward to help her balance.

"It's like watching a toddler take their first steps."

She scowled at the voice's comments before taking a moment to regain her composure. A minute later, she walked through the doorway and found herself in a sterile white hall.

"Where am I?" she whispered.

The hall was empty, not a single soul in sight.

She noticed that there was a line of lights extending in one direction. Everywhere else she looked was darkness. Her only option was to follow them.

Seeing her only option headed down the hallway of lights, only to come to a door.

It slid open for Winter as she approached and closed as she entered the room.

The room appeared to be empty, save for a grey table placed in the center. Winter took a step towards the table while her eyes scanned the room with unease. Just as her foot came down, the table lit up, and a holographic man appeared.

"Hello, I am ALN-0343-8, or Alain if you prefer to say names."

Alain was an odd man. He had a thin black mustache. His clothing consisted of a knee-length cuffed coat buttoned from chest to navel, a pleated green petticoat with a white puff-sleeved shirt, and a frilled ascot over his chest. He also wore knee-high leather boots with bows tied at the ankle and a cocked velvet hat with ribbon loops.

Adding to his odd form was the noticeable blue hue around him. Winter snorted as she focused on his mustache. It was comically thin - why did this man think it was a good idea to have one of those? She raised a hand to her chest and patted it in an attempt not to laugh.

Alain leaned on a non-existent ledge as his lips curled into a small smirk. "Oh, it seems someone finds the 'stache funny. Well, this isn't the first time someone has mocked it also won't be the last." He let out a soft sigh before quickly adding, "Sorry for the lack of seating, most of the crew took them off this level for some viewings."

There was a pregnant pause as neither spoke, both just staring at each other before Winter finally spoke. "What are you?"

"An A.I."

"A what?"

"Artificial Intelligence. Specifically, I am a smart A.I."

"So you're... a machine?"

"In a way, you're correct. But you needn't worry about that."

"Where am I?"

"That's classified. I can't tell you, and if I did, I'd have to find a creative way to kill you."

"Why couldn't I feel anything earlier?"

"I told you, it's a side effect of cryo. They didn't put you in there nicely, and on top of the fact that it was your first cryo experience."

"Cryo?"

"Cryogenic sleep. You were put on ice. Frozen, preserved. You didn't even age a day."

Winter took a step back, shocked by Alain's words. "What?"

"I said you didn't even age a day; you don't age in cryo."

"How long was I out?"

"Can't give you an exact answer; I'm not permitted to, but I can say that it was between two to three years." Alain tapped his digital fingers before continuing, "Then again, I may just be saying that to keep you confused. To be clear, you don't need to worry about how long you were out; you need to worry about why they thawed you out."

"They?"

"My bosses, O.N.I, or ONI, Office of Naval Intelligence. Boogeymen, scary people willing to do some very wrong things to make a better future."

"Why me?"

"Your records. I said it before - you're a brilliant girl. Top of her class, elected student council president not once, but three times in a row." Alain's hand waved through the air as flat, holographic squares appeared, containing information on Winter. "Your genetic records were damn near perfect. Your I.Q. is 110. Your family tree has many impressive individuals I could say more, but I think you get the point." Winter looked away from Alain, her left hand rubbing her right arm.

"ONI salivated at such raw potential, and that is one reason why they wanted you. Of course, once they realized that the actual prize was not within you, or the other one," Alain paused again as he waved away the squares and let out a sharp sigh, "they decided to tie up loose ends."

She gazed at the A.I. as he waved his hand once more, "What do you mean?"

Another square appeared this time, showing a picture of a young girl. She was pale, with black hair and red tips, curled into a ball in the back of a room. A small bar next to the picture read: 'Subject: Ruby Rose.'

Winter stared at the image for a moment. Her eyes darted back and forth as something dawned on her, "I've... I've seen that girl before. I don't know where, but I've seen her before!"

Alain said nothing.

More questions.

No answers.

Silence.

Winter looked away from Alain and towards the ground as she slumped against the wall, slowly dropping down to the floor.

Alain broke the silence this time, "Well, if you're not going to ask any more questions, then I shall wrap this up."

"As of yesterday, you were conscripted into the SPARTAN Three Program. You will be of service to the U.N.S.C. and all her colonies. You will become a weapon." He briefly paused and scratched the back of his neck before sighing, "I am required to make it clear to you that if you try to run away, you'll likely not survive long. But if you were to manage such a feat, know that ONI will hunt you until they get you back, dead or alive."

Winter was silent for a moment.

Her gaze remained upon the ground as she found her voice again, "I... Is there a way to?"

"No," Alain replied. "All I can do is offer you comforting words and convince you to look on the brighter side of things... If anything, I am sorry."

/

 **Author's Note:**

 **And done, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and sorry if it took a bit longer than expected, Though luckily for me I got a bunch more time freed thanks to this damn Coronavirus running, of course, stay safe and keep your hands clean.**

 **Other than that this is a short chapter which I plan to try and do for at least the first five or six chapters, don't want everything to drag on.**

 **Big thanks to the guy that helped beta read this chapter, seriously, you're a good dude.**


	3. Chapter 3

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Time: 1:30PM/October: 7th/ Year: 2538/ Location: Yao, Aurelia Public Schools/

Mason Komarov knew three things: One; he was in trouble. Two, he gave little care for the situation at the moment. Three, he needed to get some clean clothing.

Well, except for his shirt.

At least his shirt was ok; he cherished the somewhat big on his frame black shirt, which had the UNSC Logo embroidered on it.

He glanced down at his bloody knuckles and then at his ripped shorts, scrapes, and dried blood collected at his bare knees.

A bath would be nice.

"Mason, look at me." He glanced up from his lap and across the desk at his school's guidance counselor, Alison. He couldn't remember what her last name was. He just knew she was new after the previous counselor quit because of a previous incident.

At least it wasn't him that caused it.

Mason shifted in his spot, allowing the soft velvet padding of the chair to run along his back. Mason's steel-blue eyes focused on Alison's emerald green. He watched as her lips parted into a small frown with a sigh following after.

"Why did you beat those boys?"

Mason was always straight to the point with his teachers, counselors, and generally anyone. So it came as no surprise that when he answered, it was quick and straightforward. "They were hurting an animal."

"Animal? Mason, there weren't any animals around when we broke up the fight."

Mason's expression didn't change; his eyes never wavered. "Yes, there was. Look for some tracks in the mud. I wouldn't have fought them if they weren't hurting it."

Alison sighed but knew that Mason likely wasn't lying. The boy was honest about everything. He was never once caught lying to the staff, at least that was what the records said. "What type of animal was it, Mason?" Mason may not have been a liar as far as anyone could tell, but he was an extremely violent kid, all previous incidents involving him had some degree of injuries in them.

Mason was quick to respond, "It was a giant tortoise, the Huo Kou."

Alison sighed with disappointment, one of her hands slipping up to her temples and rubbing it gently, as another ran through her tied up blonde hair. "I'm sure it was capable of defending itself, Mason. Besides, what you did could've aggravated it."

"It was a baby, not that big." It was the truth. Sure, the Huo Kou he was talking about was the size of at least a small to medium-sized dog, but it still was a juvenile that could barely even protect itself. "Besides, the bigger one that came into my backyard is pretty gentle, allowing me to carve me and my sister's initials into its shell."

The room fell silent, both staring at each other before Alison broke the silence, "Mason, this... ugh." She paused, looking for the right words to say. "Look, this is the fourth time you've been to the counselors' office for violent behavior." She stood up from her seat and reached for something beyond Mason's sight. "We can't risk more incidents like this." She placed a yellow folder filled with papers on the desk. "These papers contain information on all sorts of people that thought violence was the answer to everything. I want you to go home and read every single piece of paper."

"Ok."

Time: 2:00 PM/October: 15th/ Year: 2538/ Location: Yao, Aurelia Public Schools/

Mason sat in the back seat of his uncle's car looking down at his lap in silence; the folder was off to his side, and his sister Lisa was asleep, leaning up against the right door.

His uncle was currently talking with Alison; she had some questions that she couldn't quite ask a child.

Mason could tell by the stupid look on his uncle's face that he had taken what that meant differently—having been his only family beyond his sibling and aunt who lived in another city. Mason had quickly learned during his time with his uncle when he would misunderstand what someone said, especially when it came from a woman.

His uncle was a weird man.

He wondered, were all butchers like that?

Looking up from his lap and out the window, he saw the open roads and streets of his homeworld, cars driving by on occasion. Some people were walking down the sidewalks, but that didn't matter.

His idle thoughts and staring ended abruptly as he felt the door open, felt his uncle's weight cause the car to shift slightly, and heard his happy hum.

His uncle was a large man - not a fat man, but one who worked hard and kept fit. He was taller than anyone Mason had ever met in his life. Mason turned to face the driver's seat only to be greeted with his uncle's smile staring back at him; steel-blue met with black. "Uncle."

"Mason."

That was the only thing said between the two., and Mason returned to staring at his lap while his uncle started to drive.

"So, you gave those boys a proper beating, at least that is how I understand it. I mean, you could've refrained from kicking out some of their teeth, but overall, I ain't mad at you."

His uncle sighed loudly, with a bit of disappointment in his voice, "I'm proud you're able to take things into your own hands, just like your dad. But you should've got some teachers instead of relying on violence." He let out a small chuckle in an attempt to be funny, "Now when we get home, you'll go upstairs and bathe. When you're done, uh well, stay in your room."

Mason didn't say a word. He didn't look up from his lap. His uncle chuckled sheepishly, "That sounds fair. I think it sounds fair." Silence fell after that; not a peep or a word was spoken, just smooth driving.

Mason closed his eyes, focusing on his thoughts, his parents. People he had never actually met, for all intents and purposes, and only really knew about their exploits through his uncle, who exaggerated a bit. A faint laugh passed through his lips, remembering when his uncle told him how his father took down three insurrectionists with just a single bullet. Still, even with all the occasional exaggerations, it was something Mason held dear to his heart, as it was one of the few things he had from his parents, like his shirt.

It also made him want to join the military, to serve in the Navy like his father and mother, to give his life for others.

Serve and protect.

There were academies on the other side of Yao where he could enlist when he was older; maybe then, his uncle would allow him to enroll.

Sadly, his train of thought came to an end as he felt the car suddenly jerk, eyes opening as his head slammed into the back of his soft seat, and his uncle cried out loudly.

"MOTHERFUCKER! GOD DAMN TRAFFIC JAM! SON OF FUCKING BITCH!"

His uncle hated traffic with a passion.

Mason looked to the right to check on his sister, Lisa, who had just woken up from the sudden stop. Her steel-blue eyes were wide and looking around in surprise.

"WHO TAUGHT YOU TO DRIVE ASSHOLE!"

Mason sighed, knowing it would be an incredibly long ride.

Time 5:00 PM/ October: 7th/ Year: 2538/ Location: Yao, Aurelia Outskirts, Kamarov Residents/

Mason was quick to clean himself up once they arrived at their family house. He ran upstairs for a quick bath before dressing himself up once more and hanging out in his bedroom.

His bedroom was big enough for a bed, a closet with a dresser inside, and some space for him to set up toys or other items. He rarely ever played with toys, though. Instead, he liked to sit on his window sill at the other side of the room.

Looking out the window, he wondered if it was a good idea to go and sit on it. Sure, he could get hurt, but mainly didn't care. He was smart enough to know when to get down.

But he didn't feel like pressing his luck, so he stood at his window looking out at his relatively large backyard. He could spot the colorful slide his uncle had gotten his sister for her sixth birthday. He could see the clean, shiny grill his uncle used for outdoor cooking during the summer.

His eyes moved to the back of his yard where the trees acted as the fence, and where the large Hou Kou was, having dug itself into the ground two weeks earlier. The shell was the only part visible.

Yet when Mason looked to the spot where the tortoise buried itself, he saw nothing but a hole much larger than his uncle's car. Fresh dirt flat dirt tracks led into the forest.

It had left.

Mason continued to stare, wondering why the Hou Kou would leave. Unfortunately, his train of thought was ended by the voice of his sister calling up to him.

"HEY! DINNER IS READY, GET YOUR BUTT DOWN HERE!"

Looking out at the window one last time for the day, Mason turned around and left his room. He quickly headed down the stairs, and once he reached the bottom, he took a left into the dining room.

The dining room wasn't large. It was just big enough to fit a dining room table with six chairs, and a dresser which sat in the back right corner of the room upon which were a series of photos of his uncle, his aunt, him and his sister.

Mason quickly took a seat opposite his sister. He looked at the empty wooden table and raised a brow, "Where's the food?"

"Uncle was bringing it, but someone called, so he's on the phone. I heard a bit of the conversation, something about scoring and damaged power supplies." His sister's lips curled into a smug smile as she stared at him, "So what was the real reason you got into a fight today? There's no way it was over a giant turtle-"

"Tortoise," Mason corrected.

"Fine giant _tortoise_. There's just no way that could've been what started the fight. Come on; it was a girl, a pretty girl." Mason rolled his eyes at his sister. Of course, she was going to doubt him. She never listened to anyone that much, always a bit more concerned with herself. That didn't mean Lisa was a bad sibling or anything. She could be a brat sometimes, especially when things didn't go her way. But when she wasn't being a brat, Lisa was a pretty fun person to be around. Energetic, full of imagination, and she enjoyed the company of other people.

"I'll tell you the same thing I told Ms. Alison: I saw a Hou Kou, getting attacked, and I reacted. That is it."

"Mhmm, sure, whatever you say, brother."

Deciding to change the subject, Mason asked, "What did Uncle make for dinner?"

"The usual - macaroni, peas and carrots and pork." As Lisa finished her sentence, their uncle walked into the room with a plate in each of his hands. He passed by both of them, setting their respective plates in front of them.

He also placed the silverware in the food, fork in the macaroni, and spoon in the peas and carrots. Their uncle took a seat at the end of the table, and he smiled at both of them.

"Uncle, where is your food?" Lisa asked.

"Oh? I, um, will make it later. I have to sort some stuff out, and I'd rather eat after I did that," he explained.

"Oh, ok."

Silence.

Mason started eating. Lisa ate, as well.

It was like this for a few minutes. No words, just eating and glancing at each other awkwardly.

Then their uncle broke the silence, "Tomorrow, we're going to be hanging around my store, and I want you both to bring something along. Mason, you've already got that covered with that uh, little yellow folder Ms. Alison gave you. You're going to read that tomorrow. And Lisa, you will be reading something."

Swallowing her food, Lisa asked, "What if Gina stops by?"

Gina was a good friend; both Komarov siblings knew. Truth be told, she was more Lisa's friend, due to their shared interests, like gravball. Mason had little in common with Gina. That didn't mean they were on bad terms; they got along perfectly fine with each other. It just meant that they rarely played together.

"Uh, the city girl?" He paused for a moment, scratching his chin before continuing, "Perhaps I will allow you both to go and play with her a bit, so long as you make sure to come back within an hour or two. Of course, this is if she shows up and if you don't complain about boredom, Lisa." Their uncle continued, "Now, eat up my little gremlins, get all the food you need in your bellies. Then relax and fall asleep, so you can both get up in the morning and eat breakfast because tomorrow is going to be a long day! You'll need all the energy you can get."

Dinner went by in a blur after that. Once it was all said and done, Mason retired to bed, fell asleep, and woke up to a good weekend day.

Time 1:00 PM/ October: 8th/ Year: 2538/ Location: Yao, Aurelia City Center, Komarov Meats & Goods/

It was quiet; not many customers had come to the store. When they did, Mason would get up from his seat, rush into the back and call out to his uncle that customers had arrived.

It would've been easier if he was allowed to go further in the back, but his uncle had forbidden him from going past the employee bathrooms; as such, he had to shout at the top of his lungs and by god did it hurt after a bit.

Mason wasn't too sure what his uncle was doing, but his uncle and another person that worked at the store were back there.

His sister, Lisa, had wandered off to the bathroom, leaving her small book, _A Gravball Story_ , in her yellow plastic seat. Mason was left alone with his yellow folder.

It was a bit hard to read due to the lights being a bit weird. Mason's uncle said it was because of something with the store's power, but didn't elaborate further.

As such, he had to deal with the natural light from the store windows to allow him to read.

It was a pain.

*Ring*

Looking up from the yellow folder, Mason checked to see who had entered the building, only to see it was Gina.

Gina was a girl roughly around his height, maybe a few inches taller. She always smiled on her tan face; currently, she said smile was missing a tooth. Her brown hair was in a small ponytail, and her green eyes were looking around and joyfully observing the store.

From the tacky checkerboard floor to the ceiling fans, to the displays showing off various meats and goods, to the shelves which had loaves of bread and other carbohydrates, she was looking at it all.

Spotting Mason, she said, "Heya!" Her voice was almost sickeningly, peppy, and sweet. It wasn't a bad thing, though. Mason quite liked that type of attitude; it was different and more comfortable than how most kids talked at his school.

Most spoke with a sickening amount of pride or some sense of superiority.

"Hey," he replied.

Gina looked around for a second before, asking, "Where is Lisa? Is she in the back getting into trouble again?"

"No, she's not in trouble, she's in the bathroom-"

*Ring*

The door opened again. Three men entered the store; all dressed in military BDUs, more specifically the army set of BDUs. Mason didn't find it too weird that they had wandered in; he knew that there was a military facility in the heart of the city. He had been by it many times, seen all the men and women doing drills outside or on a walk.

Indeed, the only thing that he thought was weird was the fact they were dressed in BDUs and armed. He wasn't sure why they would be armed at a time like this, but he wasn't going to question it.

Maybe it was some new type of drill.

One of the men looked directly at him and spoke, "Do you know where the owner of the establishment is? We need to talk to him."

Mason gave a silent nod before rushing behind the counter display and heading past the bathrooms before yelling out to his uncle to head on up. Once that was done, he headed back up to the front, stopping for a second as Lisa exited the employee bathroom and looked at him with a brow raised. "What is going on?"

"Some Army guys showed up. They want to talk with our uncle, and Gina's here, too."

"Oh, sweet, maybe uncle will let us go play-" she stopped mid-sentence upon seeing her uncle approaching from behind. She quickly pulled Mason to the side of the small pathway, allowing their uncle through.

"Excuse me, kids," their uncle said as he stopped at the counter, a smile on his face. "How can I help you on this fine day, sirs?" he asked the waiting men.

Mason and Lisa moved back to the front of the store, spotting Gina near the shelves of bread, all three would watch as the adults talked.

The one that stood at the front of the group would speak first, "Yes, we wanted to ask-"

Of course, their uncle cut him off, "Uh, just one moment, please." He nodded his head towards the children, before saying, "Mason, Lisa, go play outside with your friend. I'm going to be very busy; just be back in an hour."

Mason heard his sister say a quiet "yes," before rushing out the door, Gina in tow. Mason looked at his uncle one more time before leaving; he wondered what could be going on.

Mason covered his eyes as he stepped outside, shielding them from the bright rays of light. Once adjusted to the light level, he brought his hand down to his side, though he still squinted a bit.

Aurelia was a massive city, to the eyes of a child, at least. White, sleek skyscrapers were abundant; smaller buildings and terraces were mixed in everywhere, too. The ground was made of a hard concrete-like material. There were areas where grass and trees were free to grow, attended to by the groundskeeper when needed.

There were the roads which were big enough for both sides to have three lanes. To Mason, this place was an incredible piece of human engineering, which always left him speechless. Sadly, his staring and gazing would be stopped by the sound of his sister.

"HEY, STOP STARING AROUND AND DAYDREAMING YOU, DUMMY!" Looking to his left, Mason spotted Lisa and Gina, both a couple of feet away from him, waving their hands to get his attention.

He began making his way to them, mumbling to himself in slight annoyance, "Why do you have to yell all the time?" Once he reached them, he asked, "What are we going to do?"

Gina smiled broadly. "It's like I promised you guys last month, we're going to explore. I know this whole city like the back of my hand, and I know where all the cool stuff is."

While it was dangerous for children to be out on their own in any environment, they were still relatively safe. Aurelia had a low crime rate and lots of A.I.-monitored cameras in the back alleys. Plus, there was a large police force in the city, always on patrol for anything suspicious.

The military facility in the city also helped.

Of course, one downside to this safety was that it forced criminals to get incredibly creative; but that also forced them to work in areas where kids aren't allowed.

Mason scratched the back of his neck, still unsure about the plan, "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

Lisa rolled her eyes at Mason before speaking, "Of course it is brother. Gina is a natural at this; she never gets lost. We'll be back at the shop well before the hour is up."

"I mean, I noticed the cameras are down today, but that shouldn't be a problem, to be honest. So hey, if we get into danger, we can just run like hell," Gina quickly added. But of course, it didn't seem to matter much to her. "So stop worrying for a moment and trust me. I promise nothing will happen."

Mason sighed, knowing that it was pointless to argue. He pushed aside his worries, and just let the events go as they should, though he couldn't entirely set his concerns aside. There was that small part just nagging at him, whispering and telling him everything was going to go wrong.

He watched as Lisa and Gina took off; he soon followed after as they went about exploring the city.

They traveled through alleys and open sidewalks, bustling with adults. They even went to some more delightful sites in the city, like the military facility. No one was out on patrol for them to watch do their military thing, so they left quickly.

They passed through some of the more indoor districts, passing booths filled to the brim with items like fruits and vegetables.

The process repeated itself many times over, though they briefly stopped in the fifth alley. Well, Gina had stopped forcing both Mason and Lisa to stop.

"Why are we stopping Gina?" asked Lisa curiously.

"I thought I heard something," Gina answered back.

"What did you hear?" Mason asked.

"Sounded like a bark? But more, um more guttural? It shouldn't be a problem; let's just start heading back the way we came. It's been close to an hour." Gina's tone was unsure, but she still put on a smile as she turned around, gesturing to both of them to follow.

Upon returning to the open sidewalks, only a few adults were walking up and down the path. Gina briefly stopped before looking at Mason, "Hey, Mason."

"Yeah?"

"I heard from your sister that you wanted to join the military. Is that true?"

"Yeah, it is, why?

"Well, I was wondering if when I was older as well, could I sign up with you?" That was a strange question to ask, Mason thought. "I figure that we'd all stick together through thick and thin."

"Hey, are you saying I'd have to join the military too?" Lisa asked, only to be ignored by Mason and Gina.

Scratching his neck for a second, Mason thought over his response. It took a moment before he said anything, "Yeah, I think it would-"

In that single moment, everything went wrong, so wrong.

Something fast headed toward Gina, In another moment, something hot and wet splashed across Mason's face. Screaming, yelling, a floating sensation, blackness, and then nothing.

Time 3:00 PM/ October: 8th/ Year: 2538/ Location: Yao, Aurelia City Center/

Lisa had pulled her brother into a nearby building, a store of some kind. She laid him up against a wall. Panicked tears were streaming down her face as she checked on her brother, who had not woken up since whatever had happened. Fuck, she couldn't remember.

The stress of the situation was getting to her. Her small hands were running along her brother's cheeks. She briefly stopped to whimper at the sound of distant gunfire, yelling, screaming.

There was some blood running down his face, starting from his short blonde hair to his chin.

Her hands went to the top of his head, fingers grazing through hair and checking for cuts and openings.

It wasn't his.

If it wasn't his, then whose was it?

Where was Gina?

Wait, no.

No.

No.

She needed to focus on her brother.

"Come on, wake up, brother, please, Mason..." She knew her brother was breathing, and that was good. But he hadn't woken up, and she didn't know if that was good or bad. Lisa wondered for a brief second if this is what the teachers had called a coma; fear sunk into the little girl's heart at the thought.

Was that right? Was that the right thing? She didn't know.

She didn't know.

But regardless, she didn't want her brother like that.

No.

She didn't want to lose her brother.

She could never lose him, _never._

Lisa buried her face into her brother's chest, crying, loudly sobbing as distant gunfire started to grow close, drowning her sobbing out.

She didn't want to be alone.

She didn't want to die.

She just wanted to be home.

She lifted her eyes from her brother's chest, looking to the window. They went wide.

No.

No.

On the other side of the glass stood something indescribable to her, something inhuman, a massive thing. It was taller than her uncle, just as wide as him, and wore something she had never seen before but she knew it was blue. It looked kind of like a lizard, with yellow eyes which bore into her own.

It was clear this thing was going to kill them, the way it stared at her, her brother. It even looked like it was trying to smile as if it got some strange enjoyment from seeing the two of them.

The thing placed its four-digit hand on the window, that 'smile' still plastered on its face, then pulled its hand away a moment later reaching for something out of sight.

A moment later, the _thing_ was violently gunned down. A hail of bullets smacked into it, sending out a blue ripple along its body, before cracking and shattering in a bloody explosion.

It fell to the ground out of view.

The door to the store was kicked open. Men and women dressed in green entered the room, quickly barking orders at each other.

It was all too fast for her to process; she could barely make out what they said. Their hands pressed onto her shoulder, pried her away from her brother. Her breathing increased, eyes going wide as she squirmed in their grasp; their grip tightened and forced her to stop.

One of them spoke in an authoritative tone, "Kid, calm down. You're safe with us, kid." Lisa's movements settled down as they spoke again, "Now is that kid your sibling?"

"Y-YES! He's not waking up. He won't wake up," she cried out, tears streaming down her face.

She watched as one of the adults came down to her brother's side, doing something that she couldn't see. "He's got a pulse!" they said, scooping her brother up in their arms.

The authoritative voice spoke again, "Alright, get moving, get these kids in a hog and send them back to the safe zone. I don't want a single one of them to end up dead. You got that!"

"SIR YES SIR!" Lisa flinched at the chorus of loud noises, her eyes snapping shut as the adult holding her carried her somewhere. When she opened them again, she found herself in the back of a seat of a vehicle. She looked around, noticing the exposed nature of it, no roof.

She looked to the left, seeing her brother, still unresponsive to anything, still covered in blood.

A few of the adults got into the back as well. She couldn't see them behind her, but she could sense they were there.

The car started up with a roar of its engine. The vehicle moved, and Lisa felt some sense of safety. She watched as buildings passed by; she heard the sound of gunfire and screaming, drawing distant.

She was safe. Her brother was safe.

They were safe.

Safe.

Though Lisa wasn't sure about Gina, she hadn't seen her friend. She wasn't in the vehicle with them, and could only hope that she was ok.

Maybe she'd show up wherever the adults were taking them. Maybe her uncle was there too, waiting for them with that big dumb, goofy smile on his face. Perhaps her aunt is there also, waiting to give them all sorts of hugs and comforting words.

Eventually, the men and women took them to a place where they would be safe, at least that is what they told them. She didn't care to take note of where they were, too many people, huddled up, and scared like her.

The only thing she did care about was her family and friends. She hoped they were ok.

Yet as they went deeper, she didn't see them.

She felt a pang in her chest as they went deeper, still not seeing them.

Would she never hear her uncle's reassuring tone, or listen to him sing playful songs? Would she never hear his voice again? That dumb laugh of his?

Lisa didn't see her aunt, and she didn't know if she'd ever see her again either. She'd never get to listen to her stories from her day at the salon she owned.

No sight of Gina.

Her worry for her friend grew. Who would she play gravball with, who would she explore with, and who would listen to her complain about school?

Her hope for her family and friend dropped; it just dropped. But she couldn't let that happen. No, she needed to do something. Lisa figured if she looked at the faces of their saviors, her hope would return.

But the sight of those brave adults didn't bring her hopes up.

It crushed her hope.

Lisa could see the looks on their faces - grim, scared.

They took her and Mason to a place where others were tended to, and they sat her down. They took her brother to a room and left her there.

Whatever hope remained was dim and lay with her brother.

She didn't want to be alone; she didn't want to lose her brother.

/

 **Sorry that the chapter took so long, I had a lot going on in my life, and to be honest, it can be scary. Also, thank you all for the reviews lately, they have been helpful, and I've enjoyed them. Now moving onto the chapter, I want to make it clear that the next two chapters plus this one will be focusing on different characters. That doesn't mean we won't be seeing Ruby or Winter; they'll pop up again soon enough. What I want to make to make clear is that these couple of first chapters are introductions to the main characters of what I am calling the first arc.**


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